WLCMBCK Show Review

I chose this specific wall of artwork because I appreciated each work individually and also how they flowed from one piece to the next. Each piece seemed as though it was getting you ready for what was next. I also appreciated the curation of the entire show. Before it was explained to us, I thought that each piece was well placed in terms of space and positioning to the eye level of its audience. Once the placement was explained it made sense that each piece seemed to fit and give enough room for the next piece to shine. It was also an interesting note that the show had no particular theme other than a welcome back for the faculty and students and yet the pieces on this wall do have a dialogue with one another.

It begins with Stephan Westfall’s Cosmadin  (2008). It is smaller than a lot of his usual work measuring at just 38” x  30”, but it still commands a presence with its simple pattern of colored diamonds. The pattern becomes an optical illusion in trying to discover whether the diamonds are coming towards you or receding into space. The canvas itself appears to have been coated with several layers of gesso or gel medium, which can be discovered by just getting a few feet away. The canvas’ surface is thick and almost rough like a cold pressed sheet of watercolor paper. As you observe the actual image or painting itself, it becomes remarkable that the pattern was done in paint and by hand rather than a machine. Each diamond looks perfectly symmetrical.

The next piece is Eileen Behnke’s On The Grass (2010). Measuring at 5’ x 3’ it is the largest piece on this wall. It depicts figures on the grass outdoors. While the piece was clearly painted in a different aesthetic than Westfall’s it still commands it’s own presence on the wall. It accomplishes this by perhaps doing the exact opposite of Westfall’s painting. The paint is applied on thickly and its brush strokes are very visible. The colors also tend to vibrate with one another, a trait all the paintings on this wall share.

Julie Langsam’s Fuller Landscape (2007) is next on the wall. This painting combines pattern and landscape. The bottom of the painting is a grid of red tints that form the horizon. On top, is a building that sits against a cloudy sunset. For me, the curation of this piece is interesting because of its relationship to the previous two paintings, the pattern of Westfall and the Landscape aspect of Behnke. In terms of paint application, the paint is applied thicker in the red tinted pattern and it is obvious the entire painting is done by hand.

Finally is Caetlynn Booth’s Checkpoint (2010).  Booth’s piece measures at 16” x 48” making the painting particularly long. She applies the paint rather thick creating a more solid look to the image. The image portrays a street covered in colored lights and shadows. Again it seems to play with a combination of pattern and landscape.

In relation to the rest of the show, these four pieces seem to have one of the most cohesive themes. They play with color, paint application, pattern, to create three dimensions and optical illusions.